


Constellations

by JazzGirl123



Series: Ladybug PV Verse [5]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Post Reveal, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-02
Updated: 2018-04-02
Packaged: 2019-04-17 09:42:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14186166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JazzGirl123/pseuds/JazzGirl123
Summary: Fate doesn't make mistakes, especially not with your soulmate. It was a shame he realized that too late.





	Constellations

Years of attending these events and pretending to like any of these people prepared him to tune out the world, to just hum now and then, laugh a bit, and politely excuse himself from whatever boring, pretentious, and probably problematic things his father’s peers were saying.

It was a habit, a routine, he had had from childhood. Really, very little could shake him from this...disassociation. 

That was, of course, until he spotted  _ her _ .

She was there, holding a glass of champagne and smiling and laughing at something Bertrand Nobbles said, and he knew it was a real laugh because that was all she did back then and he could recognize it a mile away, and he felt his heart do a skip before it stumbled and fell flat on its face like a kindergartner at recess. 

Bridgette Cheng. 

She was beautiful, determined, kind. She was the executive assistant to Heather Coleson, the most exclusive and talented creative director in the country...and who happened to be employed by the only company that could intimidate his father’s. But that didn’t take away from Bridgette’s grace or ambitions. She was too gentle for that.

That being said, she completely and utterly despised him.

She had to.

He certainly did, especially when his eyes fell on her legs, exposed by the slitted dress she wore. One would think he was being highly inappropriate, if not lewd, but truthfully his gaze lingered on the soulmark peeking out from her dress. 

He couldn’t see the full image but he didn’t need to; he knew it was an exact match to his.

He could still recall her telling him so, insisting they were soulmates, only to sigh at his usual responses. He never wanted to believe in those marks, didn’t want to accept the fact that someone so obviously different from him was meant to be his other half. Fate had made a mistake with their marks.

He would never forget the look on her face when he told her that much. 

He had been  _ such an idiot _ .

“Monsieur Agreste,” greeted Heather Coleson as she approached him, flute of champagne between her fingers. “I appreciate your invitation tonight; the decorations are stunning. I might have to steal some of these concepts for the magazine.”

Felix hummed, taking a sip of his own champagne and desperately wishing it was something stronger instead. 

“Please, Madame Coleson, Monsieur Agreste is my father; I insist on being called Felix,” he answered. “In any case, I am sure my father will be most pleased to hear you honoring his name in your magazine.”

Madame Coleson smiled, amused, and then carefully nudged the young woman beside her. He was all too aware of the way her assistant had avoided looking at him until that moment.

“Most of my work is due to this little bundle of delight here,” confessed Heather. “This is my assistant, Bridgette Cheng. She’s a creative genius; makes everything absolutely adorable yet chic. You can tell how much work she puts into everything, you know.”

He recalled the complex and elegant design she would draw on the love letters she used to leave him, the delicate lace that decorated the bags of sweets she would leave in his locker, the flawless swirls of icing on the said sweets.

“I am aware,” said Felix, taking another sip of his drink. “It is my business to know other people’s business, Madame Coleson. Nevertheless, it is a pleasure to meet you, Mademoiselle Cheng.”

She stared into her drink for another two seconds before she took a long sip and finally looked at him, holding her head high as if they were meeting for the first time.

“Likewise, Monsieur Agreste,” she said, voice filled with a sort of fake politeness that master liars could only dream of pulling off. It would have sounded sincere if he didn’t know any better. “Thank you for the gracious invitation. I’ve heard stories of your family’s parties.”

Felix made the mistake of meeting her eyes, and suddenly he was fifteen again, standing in the hallways of their lockers, standing across from her like this as she spilled her heart out to him in between their art history and literature classes.

He swallowed hard and lifted his glass, only to find it disappointingly empty.

Madame Coleson, oblivious to the tension between the two of them, continued on speaking.

“Truth be told, I think I would have quit the business altogether if not for sweet Bridgette here,” she said. “Here I was on the absolute worst creative block in my life when my HR presents me with this little ray of sunshine and suddenly, everything is better. She organized my whole office, color coded everything I tell you, and baked me the most amazing cookies I had ever had. They practically melted in my mouth, Felix, dear, like you wouldn’t believe.”

“I believe you,” said Felix, glancing at Bridgette briefly. “It sounds like you ate them every day, as you should, if they’re as unbelievable as you say.”

“Oh, they were.” Madame Coleson took a sip of her drink, shaking her head. “Of course, what really helped was when she started decorating my office. It was like a Valentine’s Day card store exploded in there, but the way she made it look - oh! It was elegant, it was beautiful! You could really tell she put careful thought into what she was doing.”

“It was quite obvious,” agreed Felix absently, mind still a million miles away until the older woman gave him a curious look and he had to scramble for an explanation that didn’t reveal their torrid past. “I remember the photos you put in the magazine; you said they were your inspiration for your next work, as I recall.”

“They were.” Madame Coleson smiled. “What a good memory you have, dear. Well, anyways, the point is that Bridgette here is going to come and take my job one day. When that happens, Felix, then your father’s business really  _ will  _ be in trouble. She’s not one to give up so easily.”

“No, I suppose not,” replied Felix, and this time Bridgette met his eyes as she took a sip of her drink. “I do hope you enjoy the party though.”

“Oh, of course!” Madame Coleson’s smile only grew. “Your father has the biggest balls I’ve ever seen, and let me tell you, I’ve seen many, many big balls in my lifetime.”

Felix was glad he had already drunk all his champagne or he might have spit it right back out. Bridgette was already trying not to choke on hers, he could tell by the way she covered her mouth with her free hand. 

They made eye contact again, and he nearly choked over with laughter again.

“I, yes, well,” he stammered, trying to collect himself as he tugged at his collar. 

Bridgette made a point of looking away from her boss as her shoulders shook, no doubt hiding her silent laughter.

Madame Coleson hummed, glancing around the room.

“These parties were rumored to be magical,” she said. “I heard it was at your grandfather’s final party where your father met his soulmate. But of course, everyone knows that story. It’s a shame that he had already married your mother at the time.”

Almost instantly, Felix sobered up, and Bridgette looked back down at her shoes. He knew the story was very popular among the social elites, something to add to his father’s faults, and that Madame Coleson didn’t mean anything by it, but he couldn’t help but resent her a bit. It certainly didn’t help that soulmates were already a sore topic in the Agreste household, both for father and son.

“Yes, well,” he said, glancing down at the empty flute of champagne. Really, why couldn’t it have been wine? “I do hope you enjoy yourself, Madame Coleson. Perhaps you yourself will meet your soulmate tonight.”

“I already have mine,” said Madame Coleson with a simple smile. “My wife and I are quite happy together. Perhaps you’re the one who will meet your soulmate soon, my dear.”

She nudged Bridgette with her wrist, and gave them both a look that was far from subtle.

“Then again, no one needs to have their soulmate around to have all the  _ fun _ ,” she remarked, and he wondered if being annoying was a valid enough reason for kicking someone out of a party. “You’re young, Felix. Do try and remember that.”

“I will,” is what he said, but he made no promises. His father made him play with wooden blocks (plain ones, without any color) instead of any toys as a child, so he wasn’t quite sure what being young meant at this point in his life. 

It certainly didn’t mean rejecting your own soulmate for fear of being used and tossed aside, that much he knew. He had been too young to feel that sort of hurt and worry, and as a result he made someone else feel the same.

Madame Coleson gave him a mischievous wink before she caught sight of someone else in the crowd and vanished, leaving behind an incredibly thick air of tension between the two young adults remaining.

Felix stared down at his empty glass, mindful of the young woman next to him. This would be an excellent time to reconnect, to apologize, he knew, but for some reason, the words failed to come out. 

“Would you like a drink?” Bridgette asked finally. 

“God, please,” he replied, far too quickly. 

She smiled at him and plucked the empty glass from his hand, replacing it with her own champagne which he all too quickly drank.

“I don’t think it will be strong enough to get through this night,” she told him, voice full of mirth and understanding. “I don’t suppose you know where we can get something stronger?”

“Having something stronger is how I survive these functions,” he murmured, and she chuckled. As she did, he felt the tension deflate like a balloon. “Shall I show you the best place to escape?”

“Please,” she said, placing the empty glass on a nearby table before she followed him out to the balcony. 

Felix immediately pulled himself onto the ledge, balancing himself on his two feet, and held out a hand to Bridgette.

“This dress isn’t meant for adventure,” she remarked even as she took as his hand, letting him pull her up. “This reminds me of our rooftop fun though.”

Visions of red ribbons flying in the night sky filled his head, bright blue eyes looking back at him with affection and mischief. A moment later, he was back on the balcony, meeting those same bright eyes.

“Well, I can’t promise the same feeling,” he began, “but I assure it will be the same view.”

Felix grabbed onto the vines that adorned the side of the building, tugging on it briefly before he began to ascend towards the roof. A few moments later, he felt someone else tugging on the vines and glanced down briefly to see Bridgette right behind him, the skirt of her dress fluttering in the wind.

It wasn’t long before he pulled himself to the top and once again offered a hand to Bridgette, who graciously took it as they settled on the ledge, a good few stories above the ground. 

Bridgette adjusted her dress while Felix wandered around the rooftop, earning a curious look from his old classmate. 

He hadn’t been joking about coming here to escape, and that much was proven so as he located his secret stash, pulling out a still full bottle of Cabernet. 

Felix didn’t bother with a glass, just took a long sip from the bottle as soon as he had opened it, before he passed it to Bridgette, who did the same. 

“I suppose we need to talk,” he commented as she pulled the bottle from her lips. “On numerous subjects.”

Bridgette hummed, a hand tracing the leg he knew her soulmark to be on. She took another long drink of the wine as she complatated his words.

“Yes, we do,” she agreed finally as she passed him the bottle. “But first, I’m sorry, Felix. For what happened about, well, you know.”

Felix lowered the bottle to his lap, staring at her.

“Now why would you apologize to me?” He asked, astonished as he recalled the way he treated her as teenagers, how he had made her cry, how he turned her away every chance he got. “You didn’t-”

“I pushed when I shouldn’t have,” she said, cutting him off. “Not everyone wants their soulmate, Felix, and I should have respected that, but I didn’t. So I’m sorry, I really am. I desperately wish I could take that back.”

Something inside him froze and panged painfully.

“You do?” He asked, taking another drink from the bottle in an attempt to hide his wavering voice. 

Bridgette hummed, leaning back on her hands and staring up at the stars as she seemed to consider her words.

“Back in school, I was in love with you,” she said bluntly, and he choked on the wine but she didn’t notice. “We met when we were thirteen years old, and I had literally crashed into you when you were walking out of the library. Your copy of the Count of Monte Cristo had landed in the rose bushes somewhere and I probably gave you a couple of bruises, but you still helped me up and picked the grass out of my hair.”

She took the bottle out of his hand to take her own drink, and he let her, listening to every word she spoke.

“I was a goner then and there. Call it love at first sight. I didn’t even know you were my soulmate until Claude told me one day he saw your mark in the locker room a few years later when we were sixteen. Honestly, I didn’t care; I knew I already loved you with all my heart. I thought telling you would get you to notice me, to at least give me a chance but….”

Bridgette trailed off, letting the air around them fill with tension once more as she took a long drink.

“Like I said, not everyone wants their soulmate. It was...well, dumb of me to keep on thinking I could change your mind when it was pretty obvious you didn’t see me the way I saw you. Ironic since I knew your flirting as Chat wouldn’t change my feelings; I should have really sensed that irony, you know, but I didn’t because teenage me was dumb and focused on pretty much one thing. And that didn’t really work out in the end, now did it?”

She offered him back the bottle and he absently took it, still taking in her words. 

“You...don’t need to apologize,” said Felix finally, fingers wrapped tightly around the neck of the bottle. “There were better ways for me to approach all of that.”

“With the way I was pushing, there wasn’t really,” remarked Bridgette, looking back to the stars. “I don’t know. My mentality back then was: find a way to make this boy so happy he’ll instantly fall in love with me the way I did with him.”

He was an expert at controlling his emotions, really, especially after learning said emotions could cause chaos to spread like the plague. He had spent years practicing this sort of method, but all of that had gone out the window the second he had heard Bridgette speak in the past tense about loving him. 

Well, of course she would. After everything? Why would she still love someone as cruel and cold as him? Why would she ever?

“You had good intentions,” said Felix lamely, trying to assure her that it was okay, really, because he had been the idiot, not her, but she merely laughed.

“It doesn’t matter what my intentions were, I shouldn’t have kept pushing after you said no the first time,” she told him. “You wanted to be alone, and nothing I could do could change that once you decided on that.”

“But I didn’t want to be alone,” he blurted out, and maybe it’s because he had drank half the bottle between the two of them or because he realized too late how much he loved the girl in front of him, but either way his emotions spilled out before he could stop himself.

“I didn’t want to be alone,” repeated Felix, tightening his grip on the bottle as he stared down at the ground. He struggled to form his words coherently, and she waited patiently. “Growing up….my father told me people would try to use me any way they could to get something from me, our family. I was...suspicious of you when we first met and you asked me out on that first date to the art museum. And yes, I do remember each place you invited me to. I don’t think I could ever forget.”

He swallowed hard, doing his best not to look at her because if he did, he would fall apart.

“However, that’s...not the only reason I was so desperate to push you away. It would have been so, so easy to just check our marks to confirm or deny my suspicions, but I...was afraid to. Because if I looked and saw that your mark matched mine, I would have to admit that my soulmate was someone so vastly different from me.”

_ Fate made a mistake with our marks, Miss Cheng. Do try and realize that. _

“I was an idiot. I looked at my father and thought, things between him and my mother worked out, from what I could remember, because they were so much like each other, which is why they didn’t need to be with their ‘real’ soulmates. Looking back, I can say that it’s true that they strengthened each other’s qualities, but not necessarily in a good way. They loved each other, but they didn’t fit together as perfectly as they could have. They needed to balance each other out to be stronger together, and they tried their best, but…”

Felix stared down at the bottle in his grip.

“Fate doesn’t make mistakes. You can fall in love with other people, but no one will ever fit you as well as your soulmate. As a teenager, I didn’t see that, not until it was too late. And for that, I apologize, Bridgette. You were -  _ are  _ my perfect match, the creation to my destruction, the peace to my chaos, the disorder to my order, and I wish I could go back and tell you so.”

He closed his eyes, trying to prepare himself for the undeniable rejection he knew would be coming after his next statement.

“I would go back and tell you how much I love you, and how much I didn’t want you to leave me. I know it’s selfish to say that now, to tell you what I didn’t want to admit as a teenager, and I know it’s pointless since I know you don’t feel the same way, and I don’t blame you after everything, but-”

“Who said that?”

Felix opened his eyes, startled by her interruption, and made the mistake of looking at her, of seeing the laser focus she had, the blazing fire behind those cool blue eyes. 

“What?” He asked dumbly.

Bridgette straightened up, not breaking her gaze with him.

“Who said that I don’t feel the same way?” She demanded, and he felt his heart come to a screeching halt. 

“I just...I mean,” he sputtered. “After what I said, after how we parted, I thought...you mean you do…?”

“Felix Agreste, I’ve been in love with you since I was thirteen years old and I haven’t stopped even now,” she told him. “I’m in love with you. Nothing will ever change that, and I’m not afraid to tell you. Clearly.”

She gave him a soft smile despite her firm words, no doubt showing her lack of hesitation to assure him of her feelings, and she reached for his hands.

Without thinking, Felix released the wine bottle so she could intertwine their fingers, and neither paid any mind to the bottle tumbling off the rooftop into the grass below.

Her hand was so warm despite the cool night, and he ran his thumb over her fingers, telling himself this was real.

“I fell in love with you because you’re kind and passionate,” she said, her voice quiet and gentle. “I never cared that we were soulmates or not. Finding out we were, I think, was just an excuse I gave you in hopes I could convince you. All I cared about was being with you, Felix, whether we’re running across rooftops or avoiding the crowds downstairs.”

Felix didn’t even realize he was shaking until she scooted closer and rubbed the back of his shoulder in a comforting manner. 

“You’re too good for me,” he murmured, and she immediately stopped her rubbing to pinch his cheek. “Ow!”

“Don’t think like that,” said Bridgette sternly. “You’re perfect the way you are, Felix. You have flaws just like anyone else, just like me, but that doesn’t mean you’re not worth anyone’s love.”

Felix flushed under her intense gaze and looked away from her, but her delicate fingers took his chin and she made him look at her again.

“I love you,” she said firmly. “Nothing in this world will ever change that.”

Felix stared at her for a few moments before he whispered, “I want to kiss you”.

“Then kiss me.”

He leaned closer until she met him halfway, and instantly he can taste the wine they had been sharing but beneath that was something sweet and addicting, something utterly Bridgette. 

One of her hands cupped his face while the other slid down to his torso, clutching the front of his shirt, while he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. 

A moment later, Bridgette parted from him, though she didn’t go very far, still a breath away from him. 

“Do you want to go on a date?” He asked her, his voice soft as if anything louder would break the moment between them. She was already smiling, as if she knew what he was going to say next, and she probably did. “It’s closed now, but I would love to take you to the art museum if you’d let me.”

“That sounds perfect,” she replied, and she was so beautiful under the moonlight and he was so happy he wanted to kiss her again.

So he did, leaving no doubt in her mind that he loved her. Every inch of her.

**Author's Note:**

> Before anyone asks, yes, they did make out on the rooftop of a super fancy party. Among other things.
> 
> Anyways, I've been meaning to write this forever, and I'm glad I finally did as the PV fandom grows this season. That little Easter egg in season two definitely helped, I think. Should I have updated HRI first before working on something new? Probably, and yet...
> 
> I hope you guys liked it! Feel free to leave any feedback, and please let me know if there are any errors!


End file.
